The bank will pay NIS 20 million in cash to claimants and their attorneys; the rest will be through reduced commissions.
Bank Hapoalim (LSE:BKHD; TASE:POLI) will pay NIS 80 million to settle a class action lawsuit for overcharging members of the Gadish provident fund. The parties submitted the settlement to the court, but it also needs approval of the Attorney General.
The settlement was reached in two applications for a class action lawsuit. The claimants alleged that Bank Hapoalim and Gadish provident fund charged commissions 2.5-12% higher than those charged by other banks and their provident funds. The claimants claimed that the difference amounted to millions of shekels a year, which the bank took from the provident fund’s members.
Each of the lawsuits was for approximately NIS 150 million. Under the settlement, Bank Hapoalim will pay NIS 20 million in cash to the claimants and their attorneys, and NIS 60 million will be refunded through reduced commissions and brokerage fees that Gadish pays to the bank.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on November 14, 2005